Ever Ever After
by Sapphire Rose E
Summary: Some people say that fairy tales don't come true, but they can come true. That's if you believe… oneshot Kotoko


**AN:** Hello. I believe that I am the first one to write the first Itazura na Kiss fanfic on , at least in English. I just like to say that I'm madly in love with the anime and manga. I hope that someday the U.S. will get the manga and dub the anime. So enjoy the fanfic that I wrote. (I hope it's not corny.)

**Disclaimer: **Itazura na Kiss belongs to Kaoru Toda and TS Entertainment, not me whatsoever.

* * *

Ever Ever After

Kotoko stretched her arms and yawned. She looked around her surroundings to see that she was in a basement of some sort. "Huh? Where am I?" She asked herself. She looked down at her clothes to see she was wearing a brown dress patched up with different color fabrics. Her bed was nothing but straw.

"Cinderella!" A voice called from above.

"'Cinderella?'" Kotoko repeated wondering just what on earth was going on.

"Cinderella!" Another voice called.

Two people stormed down the wooden stairs. One girl was dressed in a red dress and had long, wavy black hair. The other girl was dressed in a green dress and had short, wavy black hair. They both looked very annoyed with their hands on their hips.

Kotoko was shocked. "Mat-Matsumoto Yuko! And Matsumoto Ayako!" She exclaimed as she pointed at them.

"Ugh! How rude, Cinderella! Pointing fingers!" Yuko told her making a face and crossing her arms in front of her chest.

"How dare you talk that way to your step-sisters?" Ayako snapped at her.

_"Step-sisters? Cinderella? What am I in a fairy tale or something?"_ Kotoko thought.

"Cinderella, just what have you been doing down here? Breakfast was supposed to be served five minutes ago!!" Yuko yelled at her.

"Yeah, and you haven't even started yet!" Ayako added.

Kotoko stood up. "All right! All right! I'm on it!" She walked over to the kitchen side of the basement.

"Hurry up! Since _you_ slept in _we_ are behind schedule." Yuko told her. They turned to go up the stairs.

They began walking up them. Then suddenly, Ayako stopped and looked over her shoulder. "Oh, mother says that because you were late, you don't get breakfast!" She snickered and continued to follow her elder sister.

* * *

It was still morning and Kotoko was busy scrubbing the tile floor. The ends of her worn out brown dress were tied up so that she wouldn't get them wet. A wooden bucket filled with water was next to her. Bubbles could be seen on the rim of the bucket. Bubbles were also gathered at the end of her scrubbing brush. A knock came on the door in front of her. She sighed and stood up, leaving the brush on the floor. She let her skirt down and walked over to the door. She opened the door. "Yes?" Her eyes widened as she saw who was at her door. "Kinnosuke!"

"Ah, Cinderella, my love!" Kinnosuke exclaimed. "How are you?"

"Okay, I guess." She replied. "My crazy step-sisters are driving me crazy. I've had to make them breakfast, do the laundry, wash the bathrooms, make their beds, feed the animals, and now I am scrubbing the floors."

"Oh, my poor Cinderella! If you were to marry me now, then I could rescue you from all this!" He said, practically crying.

"_Well, Kinnosuke is still the same as always."_ Kotoko thought to herself.

"Oh, I forgot!" He said; then he dug into his inner pocket of his jacket. He pulled out four envelopes and handed them to her. "The Prince wants all the maidens in the land to come to his ball. Even though I rather have you not go."

Kotoko took them from him. She looked at the names on the envelopes and saw one with her name written in script in black ink. "I'm invited?" She asked.

"Invited to what?" A voice behind her declared. Kotoko turned to see Yuko, Ayako, and their mother, Reiko.

"Well, the Prince has invited us to his ball." Kotoko explained.

"Yeah, His Highness is going to choose the most beautiful and smartest maiden to be his wife." Kinnosuke added.

Yuko and Ayako's eyes lit up at the sound of that. They turned to their mother. "Can we go, mother?" They asked in unison.

Reiko took three invitations from Kotoko. "Of course you can go. You two are the smartest and most beautiful girls in all the land." She told them.

Kotoko looked at the invitation in her hand. She wanted to go for some strange reason.

"Mother!" Ayako gasped as she pointed at Kotoko. "Cinderella can't go too!"

"Yeah, Cinderella doesn't have anything pretty to wear to hide her ugly face." Yuko said with a flip of her black hair.

"Oh, you're right." Reiko said, pretending to release her "mistake."

"And she so dumb, she'll be an embarrassment to us." Ayako added.

"Yes, there's that too." Reiko said, pausing. "I guess Cinderella could go."

"Mother!" Ayako and Yuko whined.

Reiko continued, "But, first she has a lot of things to do plus she needs to get a dress somehow." She looked at Kotoko then at Kinnosuke how stood in the doorway. "What are you doing? Leave!" She barked.

Kinnosuke realized what he was doing. "Oh, sorry, Ma'am!" He shouted; then he ran away.

"Mother! Cinderella can't be able to go!" Yuko told her mother.

Reiko walked away from them. "But she still has many things to do." She kicked the bucked of water over, dumping all the soapy water. Her sweet tone was replaced with a stern one, "Starting with cleaning this up and finishing her chores." Reiko chuckled and walked away.

Yuko and Ayako snickered as they followed their mother.

Kotoko looked at the mess in front of her and sighed, "I'll never be able to go."

* * *

Evening finally dawned on the land and somehow Kotoko finished all her chores. She pulled out an old pink dress from an old trunk. She was in her room: a little, rundown room in the attic. She blew the dust off the dress; then sneezed. The dress was her mother's. It was a little out of fashion, but it was still pretty.

Kotoko got changed into it and headed down stairs. She wore a pair of pink shoes that Ayako had out grown years ago. Kotoko's feet were small enough to fit into them. Around her neck was a pair of white pearls that Yuko had thrown out months ago. In her hair was a clip of a pink butterfly that Reiko had thrown out the day Kotoko's father had died.

Kotoko looked over at her stepmother and stepsisters as they began to walk out of the door. "Wait!" She called. They turned to see her come down the stairs. "Please, wait! I can go!"

Reiko, Yuko, and Ayako's eyes grew wide as she came over to them. She twirled in front of them. "Is this okay? Can I go?"

Reiko grew calm. "It's all right. But it's so last century. Dear child, where on earth did you get this?" She asked as she circled her like a hawk.

Kotoko tried to follow her look. "Well, it was my mother's."

"And just where did you get those shoes?" Reiko asked. "Don't they look familiar, Ayako?"

Ayako looked down at those shoes. "Hey, those are my shoes!" She exclaimed as she pointed a red painted fingernail, which matched the color of her dress, at her.

"And where did you get those beads? Don't they look familiar, Yuko?"

Yuko pointed a blue painted fingernail at Kotoko. "Those are mine! You little thief!"

Reiko reached up and grabbed the butterfly clip from her hair. "And this clip," Reiko started as she placed it into her hair, "this is mine." Reiko looked into the mirror on the wall. "It matches perfect." She mumbled eyeing the color of her dress the clip. "As for you," she turned around and faced Kotoko, "return to what belongs to your stepsisters. NOW!"

Kotoko's face turned very sad. "Yes, Ma'am." She slipped off the shoes and took the beads off her neck. She handed each item to the right girl.

"Now," Reiko began, "as punishment, you are to go up to you room, quickly."

"Yes, Ma'am." Kotoko turned and started to walk back towards the stairs.

Yuko stomped a foot down on the hem of her dress. "Whoops."

Kotoko took a step forward and fell, ripping the dress in the process.

"Looks like you can't even try to go, since you don't have anything to wear anyway." Ayako laughed.

"Come, come, girls. We're are going to be late." Reiko said, opening the door. Yuko and Ayako walked out of the house. Reiko closed the door behind her.

Kotoko stood up and ran. She ran into the garden, crying. Those girls went too far. They didn't have to be so mean. She fell into a patch of grass with little pink flowers in it and sobbed.

Kotoko didn't notice it, but little white sparkles began to form in the air. They gathered together to make a small body with wings. Suddenly, the sparkles disappeared and a little fairy was floating above her. "Kotoko-chan! Kotoko-chan!" It called.

Kotoko lifted her head. "Hey, you said my name." Once she saw the fairy, her eyes grew very wide. "Auntie!" (The fairy was no other then Machiko Irie!)

Machiko smiled slyly and held up her wand. "That's me! Now, Kotoko-chan––err, I mean, Cinderella, we must get you to Onii-chan's––err, I mean, the Prince's ball." She looked around. "Now we need a carriage." She spotted a pumpkin. "Ah! That would do!" She flicked her wand and the pumpkin turned into a sparkling white carriage that was shaped to look similar to a pumpkin. Four white horses were hooked to it with a little boy as the driver.

"Yuuki-kun?" Kotoko asked, trying to figure out who he was.

Yuuki stuck his tongue out at her.

"Now, now," Machiko started, "you need a dress fit for a Princess!" She flicked her wand. Kotoko was engulfed with a bunch of sparkling dust. A white dress with little pink flowers along the hem replaced her other one. She wore long white gloves and white pearls around her neck and in her ears. Her hair was pulled back in ponytail and it was curled into one big spiral. On her feet was a pair of sparkly glass shoes.

"Oh, this is amazing! Thank you, Auntie!" Kotoko exclaimed.

"Yes, yes. Just remember, when the clock strikes twelve the spell will be broken. So get going and win Onii-chan's heart!"

Kotoko got into the carriage and it took off toward the place.

* * *

Naoki yawned as a bunch of girls talked to him. All of the girls were the same. They tried to dress really pretty to impress him and flirt with him nonstop. He just wanted to get away. He looked pass the two girls, who's names were Yuko and Ayako, and spotted a girl all by herself. She didn't seem to be super pretty by using make-up and other things, but had natural beauty. She seemed to be lost or dumbfounded by the amazedness of the palace. She held in her hand a glass. She was looking up at the paintings on the ceiling, he could only guess. Her jaw almost hit the floor, but her glass certainly did. Naoki could only chuckle. He looked and saw two of his servants coming over to her and cleaning up the mess. He looked back over at the two girls in front of him. "Excuse me, could we talk another time?" He said and walked through the gap between the two.

"Sure!" Yuko laughed.

"Yeah, anytime." Ayako said.

* * *

"I am so sorry." Kotoko told the server.

"It's fine, Miss." He said as he cleaned up the glass and another one soaked up her drink with a rag.

"I really am sorry." Kotoko told them again.

"All is forgiven, Miss. Excuse me." He said and took the bits of glass away and the man with the now stained rag followed him.

Someone tapped her on her shoulder. "Smooth move."

She looked up into the eyes of the most handsome man she had ever seen. "Well, I'm sure you would have done the same thing if you had see this ceilings for the first time."

"No, I wouldn't." He quickly replied.

Kotoko pouted as she heard music play.

"Would you care to dance?" He asked her.

"Dance? Oh, I don't dance." She told him.

"Neither do I." He told her.

"You're still the same as ever, Irie-kun." Kotoko told him.

"Pardon, but I don't ever remember giving you my name." He told her.

"Oh, that's right, I'm sorry. I just heard someone calling you that before. Haha." Kotoko lied. _"This was a fairy tale so of course Irie-kun wouldn't remember me."_

"So what's your name?" Naoki asked, breaking her thoughts.

"Uh, uh, my n-name is Kotoko!" She blurted out.

Naoki made a puzzled face at her. "Hm, why does that name seem so familiar?"

"Maybe it's the name of your dream girl?" She asked.

He thought for a moment longer. "No." He replied, leaving Kotoko speechless. He looked at her, startling her. "Well, I'm the gentleman here and I really think that we should dance."

"Oh, o-okay." She replied as he took her hand and led her out to the main floor. "But I've never danced in my life."

"Just follow my lead." He told her as he began to move to the waltz.

* * *

Yuko and Ayako noticed that the Prince was dancing with some girl. "Ayako, do you see that?" Yuko asked her sister.

"I do! And he dared to refused a dance with us!" Ayako proclaimed.

"Who is that girl? Do we know her?" Yuko asked, looking from the Prince and the mystery girl to Ayako.

"No. I don't think we do."

"But doesn't she look familiar?"

"She does!"

Then suddenly the mysterious girl stomped on the Prince's foot. Yuko and Ayako could tell that she was apologizing greatly for it. "She probably did that on purpose." Yuko noted.

"Yeah, poor Naoki-kun!" Ayako agreed.

* * *

Naoki led Kotoko to the balcony. The stars and the full moon sparkled down on them. Kotoko sat down on the stone bench and he did as well. Kotoko looked over at Naoki. "I am so sorry about stepping on your foot. I told you that I'm not good."

"Yeah, you aren't." He told her.

She sulked. "Yeah, I'm no good at all."

Naoki noticed her depression. "But you are interesting." He said, looking away from her.

She looked up at him, but saw him looking away. "Huh?"

He sighed and looked up at the sky. "You're different. You don't flirt with me. You're not trying to be perfect around me. You don't even treat me with respect! Do you know who I am?" He asked her. He looked directly into her eyes.

"Yes, you are Naoki Irie." She told him simply.

"Yes, I am Naoki Irie the…"

Dong! Suddenly, the bell, behind him, rang.

Kotoko looked at the face of the clock a distant behind them both. She saw that it read twelve o'clock. She stood up. "Oh, no! I have to go!" She said and turned to run as the bell rang again.

Dong! It was on chime two, only ten more chimes to go.

"Wait! Don't go!" He told her as he stood up to chase her.

"But I must! Goodbye!" She told him and slipped back into the ballroom and past the crowd.

Dong! Nine more chimes to go.

As soon as Naoki stepped into the ballroom, a crowd of girls surrounded him. "Kotoko!" He called, but she neither replied nor looked.

Dong! Eight more chimes to go.

Kotoko ran to the doorway. She pushed the doors opened and looked for the exit.

Dong! Seven more chimes to go.

Naoki finally managed to get free from the group of girls. He followed after her. "Kotoko!" He called.

Dong! Six more chimes to go.

Kotoko rushed down the grand case of stairs. She was down the middle of them when she lost her right glass shoe. She turned to go get it and saw him standing at the top of the stairs. Her eyes widened and she turned and went back down the stairs, leaving the shoe.

Dong! Five more chimes to go.

Naoki raced down the stairs after her. He stopped and picked up the glass shoe. "Wait! Kotoko! You left this!" He called.

Dong! Four more chimes to go.

Kotoko climbed into the white pumpkin shaped carriage. Yuuki snapped the reins and the horses were off. She looked out the window and saw Naoki mounting a horse. She looked forward. "Hurry, Yuuki!"

Dong! Three more chimes to go.

"Yah!" Naoki said and dug his heels into the sides of the horse. He pulled on its reins. The horse whinnied and took off after the carriage.

Dong! Two more chimes to go.

Kotoko couldn't take it. She knew that he could catch her. "Yuuki, on the count of three, jump!"

"What are you crazy?" He asked her.

"One! Two!" She opened the door to the carriage. "Three!" She jumped and he followed after.

Dong! The last bell chimed. The carriage turned into a pumpkin and Naoki's horse crushed it with its hooves. Naoki looked around and didn't see the carriage anywhere. He pulled on the reins. "Whoa." He commanded. The horse stopped. "Just where did she go?" He wondered out loud. Then he turned the horse around and headed back to his castle.

Kotoko was alone in the bushes. Her white dress had turned back into her ripped pink one. She looked up at the sky. "Thank you so much, Auntie." She whispered. She looked down at her feet. She saw that her left glass slipper was still there. She took it off her foot and held it close to her heart. "Thank you so much."

* * *

The next day word got out that the Prince was looking for the girl who fit the glass slipper. When Reiko Matsumoto got word of this. She just knew that one of her own daughters would fit it.

Now Kotoko was busy in the kitchen, making lunch. For some reason, Reiko had told her not to come up, until Reiko, herself, came down to get her. "What is her problem? Really!" Kotoko sighed. "I'm going up stairs to take a look and no one will stop me!" She walked up the stairs and over to the living room where she heard voices. She looked through the lock and saw Sudou sitting on the couch with her glass slipper in his hands.

"Are you sure there's no other girls in the household?" He asked.

"No there is not." Reiko responded.

"I know that shoe fit me last night!" Yuko explained. "I think my feet are just swollen from dancing all night."

"Well, I think I must be going now." Sudou said as he stood up.

Kotoko opened the door. "Wait! Let me try it!" She told him.

Reiko, Yuko, and Ayako all gasped at her presence.

"Cinderella! What are you doing up here? Lunch needs to be prepared." Reiko told her.

"Please let me try it." Kotoko begged.

"I guess it won't hurt." Sudou said as he passed by Reiko.

Reiko glared at him and stuck her foot out as he passed, making him trip. As he fell, the glass shoe slipped from his grasp and flew through the air. Gravity soon began to take place and the glass shoe hit the marble floor, breaking into several hundred pieces. Reiko smirked at him and the mess. "Opps." She said.

"Oh, no!" Sudou gasped as he began to gather the pieces. "What is His Majesty going to do to me?" He wondered out loud.

"Excuse me, Sudou-semp––I mean, Sudou." Kotoko began, catching her mistake. She reached into the pocket of her apron and pulled out the other glass shoe in which everyone gasped at. "I have the other one." She told him.

Sudou stood up and took it from her. Then he slipped it onto her foot. It fit perfectly.

* * *

Naoki led Kotoko down the long case of marble steps. Both of them wore white for they had just gotten married. Suddenly, Kotoko stopped and turned. She had dropped her shoe on the stair. Naoki's father rushed down and picked it up for her. He slipped it on her foot and she kissed the top of his head in which he blushed greatly at. Then she rejoined Naoki and they climbed into the carriage.

"Now, tell me why did you lie to me about your name?" Naoki asked her.

"I did not lie. My name is Kotoko. Why did you lie to me about being a Prince?"

"I did not lie. I was going to tell you, but you ran off." He explained.

"Oh, whatever. I got my prince in the end anyway!" She said and kissed him.

_And they lived happily ever after._

* * *

Kotoko opened her eyes and stretched. She yawned deeply. Her room was dark and her blanket was twisted around her. She was alone in her bed. "What a weird dream." She mumbled. She looked over at her nightstand and at the pink picture frame. She picked it up and looked at the wedding picture of her and her husband Naoki Irie. She sighed. She remembered that he was still at the hospital working. She sighed.

Suddenly the door to her room opened up and a little bit of light flooded in. She looked over and saw him. She stood up and ran over to him. She hugged him. He kissed her on the lips. "Hello." Naoki said.

She looked up and smiled. "Hello!" She said, almost too cheerfully. He rolled his eyes at her.

* * *

_**Ever ever after**_

Kotoko hugged her prince charming in their bed. Both of them were fast asleep, dreaming sweet dreams together.

_**Storybook endings fairy tales coming true**_

Yuko sighed as she watched the white carriage as Cinderella and the Prince drove away. Her only prince has chosen another girl over her. Come to believe it was her, own stepsister.

_**Deep down inside we want to believe they still do**_

Suddenly, someone stood in Yuko's way. It was Sudou, the king's messager. He was smiling at her sheepishly. Maybe, he was her "prince charming?"

_**In our secret heart it's our favorite part of the story**_

Kinnosuke sighed. His Cinderella had left him for his boss, the Prince. He just knew that would happen! He never should have given her the invitation! He was now practically crying! Then someone called him name.

_**Let's just admit we all want to make it too**_

_Ever Ever After_

_By Sapphire Rose E._

**_Ever ever after_**

**_If we just don't get it our own way_**

Kinnosuke looked up into big blue eyes. It was Chris, the annoying rich girl. She attached herself onto his arm and giggled. He guessed he could get used to this.

_**Ever ever after**_

_**It may only be a wish away**_

Ayako sighed. Her stepsister took her prince away! How could that have happened? She watched sadly as the carriage drove away. She sighed again. She had lost and she'll admit it.

_**Starting your fashion, wear your heart on your sleeve**_

Ayako turned to leave when she bumped into someone. She looked up into brown eyes. She was looking at Takendo. Maybe he was her prince all long?

_**Sometimes you reach what's realest by making believe**_

Reiko narrowed her eyes as she watched the carriage drive away. It was just unfair! It should be one of her daughters riding in that carriage! Not Cinderella!

_**Unafraid, unashamed**_

Jinko and Satomi squealed as they watched Kotoko and Naoki climb into the carriage. They both squeezed each other's hands in excitement as both of the girls' boyfriends chuckled nervously at the two girls.

_**There is joy to be claimed in this world**_

Yuuki watched the two lovebirds make their way to the carriage. He could only be happy for them inside, but outside he looked like he could careless.

_**You even might wind up being glad to be you**_

_Itazura na Kiss belongs to Kaoru Toda & __TMS Entertainment_

_**Ever ever after**_

_**Though the world will tell you it's not smart**_

Yuko yawned and stretched her arms. She woke up to be in her own bed. She blinked and thought about the weird dream she just had.

_**Ever ever after**_

_**The world can be yours if you let your heart**_

Ayako tossed in her bed. She opened her eyes and saw that she was in her own room. She sat up and curiously thought about her dream. Wasn't she just talking to Takendo a minute ago?

_**Believe in ever after**_

_Music_

_Ever Ever After_

_By_

_Carrie Underwood_

_**No wonder your heart feels it's flying**_

Kinnosuke snored loudly in bed. He dreamed about Kotoko for a while, but suddenly Kotoko changed into Chris. He snored again and rolled over.

_**Your head feels it's spinning**_

Shigeki Irie sat up in bed with his legs hanging over his side of his bed. He just had the weirdest dream that he was a king and his son had married a girl who looked like Kotoko but her name was Cinderella. He shook his head wildly at the remembrance of the dream.

_**Each happy ending's a brand new beginning**_

Chris woke up and stretched. She loved the dream that she had! She had cheered Kinnosuke up about this girl named Cinderella, then Kinnosuke agreed to marry her, Chris! She giggled at the thought.

_**Let yourself be enchanted, you just might break through**_

Machiko Irie giggled in her sleep. She kept muttering "Onii-chan and Kotoko-chan" a couple times, then a "Congratulations" with a big yawn.

_**To ever ever after**_

_**Forever could even start today**_

Satomi was asleep in her bed as the sunlight began to pour in through her window.

Jinko was also asleep in her own room in her own house. The sunlight began to pour in through her window and onto her body as well.

_**Ever ever after**_

_**Maybe it's just one wish away**_

_Thank you for readings! I hope you enjoyed it! _

_**Your ever ever after**_

Sunlight poured in through the window of Naoki and Kotoko's room. They were both asleep in their bed. Naoki opened his eyes and saw his wife in his arms. He kissed her forehead.

Suddenly, Kotoko slowly opened her eyes and saw his handsome face. She smiled.

He leaned down and kissed her nose. "Good morning."

"Morning." She replied her prince with a smile.

_**Ever ever ever after**_

_**(I've been dreaming of a true love's kiss)**_

Naoki leaned down and captured his wife's lips with his own.

_**Oh, for ever ever after**_

Machiko Irie, who was a fairy once more, flew over the white carriage as Prince Naoki and Cinderella (Kotoko) kissed. With a flick of her wand, the words appeared like magic:

_The End_


End file.
